A 35-year-old commercial vehicle driver, who had gone to a police station in Lagos to seek bail for his detained colleague, has been brutalised by a police sergeant, who ordered his detention.
The Point was exclusively informed that the victim had one of his fingers amputated, following the excruciating torture he reportedly received in the hands of his tormentors at the Olosan Police Station, Mushin.
The Igbo-Ora, Oyo State-born driver, identified as Sanusi Sulaimon, had gone to Olosan Police Station in ‘Area D Police Command’ to bail out one Akeem, who was detained at the station following a quarrel with one of his female neighbours.
At the station, while perfecting the bail of Akeem, Sulaimon realised that he knew the investigating police officer of the case and that the two of them once had a vehicle business transaction together in August 2014.
It was gathered that Sulaimon and the police officer exchanged pleasantries while the bail was perfected and the detainee released.
But the situation took another twist just after the bail was effected.
A reliable source said, “As they were about leaving the police station, a group of policemen asked Sulaimon to buy them recharge cards. On his way to buy the recharge cards, a tricyclist lost control and was heading in the direction of Sulaimon. Swiftly, Sulaimon dodged the incoming disaster by diving away from the tricycle.
“The tricyclist rammed his tricycle into the nearby gutter and smashed his windscreen. Then there was a heated argument between the tricyclist and Sulaimon over who should pay for the damage done. In the end, the tricyclist, who initially promised to report the matter to the police at the nearby station, reversed his decision, admitting that he was guilty after all. He rode his tricycle away and vanished from the scene just as the crowd dispersed.”
The source, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, added, “When the IPO who had just released Akeem on monetary bail conditions got wind of what had transpired outside the station, he ordered for the detention of Sulaimon. The police sergeant swiftly handed over Sulaimon to ‘Writer 2’ with specific instructions. And in the course of taking Sulaimon to the cell, ‘Writer 2’ wedged the fingers of their victim against the iron bars after which he jammed the door. What followed was a loud noise that attracted some police officers to the scene.
“The officers who came to the scene only witnessed a pool of blood, while the victim groaned in pains. The Divisional Police Officer of the station, equally rushed to the venue and ordered that the victim be rushed to the nearby Aishat Specialist Hospital, where the damaged finger was eventually amputated.”
Meanwhile, the police sergeant who ordered for Sulaimon’s detention couldn’t be found and meetings organised by the DPO to look into the matter were never honoured by the sergeant who had spent close to 12 years in the station.
Speaking with our correspondent at the station during one of the botched meetings, Sulaimon said, “I had a business transaction with Sergeant Abiodun some months ago. That was when I wanted to sell a bus sent to me by my friend. In the course of selling the bus, Sergeant Abiodun got wind of it, traced me to my location and arrested me on the suspicion that the vehicle was a stolen one. At the station, I proved to him that the vehicle was not a stolen one. I showed him all the papers, which convinced him.
“He, however, collected a sum of N20,000 from me before letting me off the hook. You see, one thing that baffles me is that weeks after, the same sergeant brought to me those that finally bought the vehicle. He did not do that for free because he collected N20,000 from me as his own share. Now, this has happened. My finger has been amputated for no reason
